Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program

About the program

The School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Arizona State University (ASU) and the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry (ADCRR) are pleased to offer students the opportunity to enroll in the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program. In Spring 2020, the course is being offered at the medium security East Unit in Florence, AZ and is being co-taught by Dr. Cody Telep and Ms. Stephanie Morse. The course will not be offered in Fall 2020. In Spring 2021, the course will be offered at a medium security unit in Goodyear, AZ and be co-taught by Ms. Danielle Haverkate and Ms. Caitlin Matekel.

The Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program is unlike any other class offered at ASU. For Spring 2020, the semester-long course meets once per week inside a prison located approximately 65 miles southwest of Phoenix. The class combines ASU students (outside students) with an equal number of incarcerated men (inside students) at the Arizona State Prison Complex Florence in Florence, Arizona. In Spring 2021, the course will meet at the Arizona State Prison Complex Perryville in Goodyear, Arizona. Both ASU and incarcerated students have the same syllabus and academic requirements, and students learn about crime and justice together through collaboration and dialogue.

Inside-Out was founded by Lori Pompa at Temple University with the first class taking place in the Philadelphia Prison System in 1997. The program has since grown to include over 1,000 trained instructors from nearly every U.S. state and 9 countries reaching over 38,000 students. The Spring 2016 Inside-Out class taught at ASU was the first time the course was taught in the state of Arizona.

The course was first taught by Dr. Kevin Wright. For any general questions about Inside-Out at ASU, please contact Dr. Wright (kevinwright@asu.edu)

To be considered for the course, students are required to fill out an application. Students who make the short list of applicants will then complete a brief interview with the course facilitators, who are responsible for selecting the final roster of students for the course. Class size is very limited. Look for applications for the Spring 2021 class in October.

Course description

(note that the course flyer was originally intended for a Fall 2020 class. The course has been delayed until Spring 2021)

The course will meet Wednesdays from 3:30-6:30pm (because of transportation time, students should be available between 2:30pm and 7:30pm on Wednesday).

The Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program is a semester-long introduction and application of the concepts around refocusing justice, taught inside the women's prison at the Arizona State Prison Complex - Perryville in Goodyear, Arizona. The curriculum in Spring 2021 will include literature and principles from psychology, communication, and criminology that emphasize the importance of motivation, communication, and social relationships to our everyday lives and criminal justice. .

Inside and outside students meet separately on the first and last weeks of class in order to properly orient and debrief the experience. During the semester, inside and outside students will discuss issues, complete reading/writing assignments, and work together to complete a group project.

NOTE: Transportation to and from the prison will be provided by ASU. Students are required to meet at ASU Downtown and will be dropped off at ASU Downtown after class. The security of all students is a priority and care is taken to ensure semi-anonymity (first names only) to prevent outside contact during or following the semester.

How to apply

To be considered for the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program:

Complete and submit an application form. (applications will open for the Spring 2021 class in October)

If selected, attend a 15-minute screening interview in person or via Zoom.

Important dates:

Application deadline for Spring 2021 will be anounced in the Fall. There will be no Fall 2020 class.

Screening interviews (for those chosen for an interview) will be held in November 2020